Not much happening in caught swarm!?

1427 Views 6 Replies 6 Participants Last post by atbda, May 21, 2010

atbda

Discussion Starter · #1 · May 21, 2010

We caught our first swarm last Friday (May 14), but are not completely sure if we captured the queen because the swarm was 15 feet up in a tree and we caught them at night. We're beekeeping beginners and don't know what to look for in a swarm hive. Basically we put the swarm of bees into a 10 frame super with waxed foundation frames. We've been feeding them them sugar water daily. Everyday we check the hive from the outside entrance and the bees don't seem to leave the hive. They walk to the feeder, drink from it, and walk back into the hive (we don't see them fly from the hive). We opened and checked the hive this evening (six days after capture) and the bees were clustered between the hive box wall and the outermost frame. There was no signs of comb building. Is this normal? Or does this seem to indicate that there is no queen? We have another established strong hive of bees. Should we take a brood frame from that hive and put it in the new swarm hive to get them started? Any help or suggestions are appreciated.

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honeybeekeeper

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Joined Mar 3, 2010

1,144 Posts

#3 · May 21, 2010

I got a 6 lb swarm may 8th and put them on the right side of my TBH and they was drawing comb the next day..may 10th i got called again for a swarm from the same guy and the same tree. I went and it was about 3 lb this time, i put them on the left side and they done the same thing that yours was doing...They would cluster up along the wall and that was it..This went on for a few days until i went out and looked inside and the left side was empty, they was gone. Here they went over and joined the right side and now there is 6 drawn comb now and they are going strong. They fly out of there like an airport during a thanksgiving holiday...hahaha...I say you dont have a queen but since it has only been 6 days, i would keep an eye on them for alittle bit longer before you go buy a queen, just in case there is a queen in there already!